“Uh…?”What was this now? A bad feeling struck Muhae, and he nearly frowned.His usual impassive expression served him well once more. Even when faced with Joo-o, whose face crumples at the slightest provocation, Muhae rarely showed emotion. Truly.“I never thought it was a legitimately purchased item since the moment he brought the bracelet here. Platinum is especially precious, so I figured some mercs picked it up as lost property and sold it cheap.”The old woman clenched her empty wrist and lowered her gaze.“It’s an unfortunate story, but someone recently offered a good price, so I let it go. My granddaughter’s showing promise in her studies. She might even become a researcher someday—I wanted to at least give her private tutoring.”“Do you know who you sold it to? Can you give me any details—name, appearance, anything?”“She just said she was a collector. She was a bit unusual; her hair was really bright…”Thunk. At once Muhae felt profanity bubble up to his throat at the memory of that unmistakable description.“Blueberry Cinnamon Roll.”“Huh? Oh, right. She’d tied her hair in a round bun. Do you know her?”Joo-o piped up to confirm. That wasn’t just someone with blue hair—it had to be Cheong.Muhae forced a bitter smile and nodded. After the old lady thanked him and disappeared inside, his curse finally escaped.“Fuck.”Cheong had once again beaten Muhae to anything useful. With so many lackeys at his disposal, he’d come personally, noted the details, and vanished.From the moment he’d appeared in the sewers and kicked that robot, Muhae had felt uneasy. Had Cheong held a grudge over an unanswered offer? He kept showing up at every turn.‘How the hell…?’The more Muhae replayed the events, the stranger it seemed. Both the sewer robot incident and now Olga’s bracelet lead had come from Cloud’s intel—and yet Cheong had nipped every opportunity.Unless Cheong had access to the same inside information, how did he know exactly which items to claim?“He probably took everything.”“What?”As Muhae’s jaw tightened, Joo-o’s voice sounded beside him, as though reading his thoughts.“He grabbed anything that looked important—or even a bit questionable. If it was something that might connect to you, he snatched it.”His small voice held grim conviction. Muhae glanced at him and noticed his tightly clenched fist.He was holding that green figurine again—those damned Tinkle Friends. How many tornado snacks had Joo-o devoured to collect the whole set?“He’s loaded,” Muhae muttered.“Yeah. And he’s got plenty of underlings.”And he looked infuriatingly bored. Muhae could still see that hollow, wearied gleam in his eyes.Muhae unclenched his jaw, taking a deep breath. He imagined Joo-o ripping open colorful cereal packs at every meal to feed that figurine obsession.In the end, Joo-o had collected every single figure. Muhae later learned there was even a hidden Aurora version—and he’d bet Cheong got his hands on that, too.‘If you grab anything remotely connected, odds are you’ll hit the mark.’It was a simplistic yet plausible theory. While Muhae chased down confirmed leads from Cloud, Cheong sifted through the overflow of low-grade intel, deploying his agents to probe everywhere.Leaving a trace on dozens of possible clues seemed insane—but…‘He does seem a bit unhinged.’Clearly they’d picked the wrong guy. Olga’s bracelet had gone to him, too.“Muhae.”“What?”“Shall we go see him?”Joo-o tugged at Muhae’s sleeve. His face, looking up innocently, was too cute for words.If Muhae left him behind, would he meekly wait at home? It wasn’t worth considering. Muhae sighed as habit, pressing his temple with two fingers.As soon as they entered Sakdal, he felt eyes on them. Even though night had fallen and the streets were crowded, he sensed a thousand stares on the back of his head.No one lurked in the shadows or tailgated them like before. Instead, everyone who knew of the recent incidents stared openly at the pair.Soon, a ⊛ Nоvеlιght ⊛ (Read the full story) man in black blocked their path.“May I escort you?”His tone was polite, but his voice was hard and cold. Muhae followed him through Sakdal without hesitation.They reached a tall building—rare in the slums—adorned with a goblin-shaped neon sign. They entered without friction.Ding—Cheong’s private VIP elevator offered only one button. The doors opened on the top floor to reveal a long, narrow corridor.Red carpet underfoot, enigmatic paintings hung sparsely on the walls. The decor was absurdly eccentric.The layout was equally peculiar: hallways bent unexpectedly, and unmarked doors appeared mid-passage.Thud. Joo-o tapped a wall; it sounded hollow—just a removable partition.Only insiders could navigate this maze to meet the right person.“A labyrinth, isn’t it?”Fortunately, Muhae had been personally invited by Sakdal’s manager. After a couple of turns, they came to an unassuming black door.Click. As it opened, the penthouse’s expanse burst into view. The open space and lavish décor felt like a different world.Beyond the glass walls, neon lights twinkled across the cityscape. Sitting with his feet on the desk was, as expected, the blue-haired man.“Hello.”Cheong greeted in a languid voice. Joo-o tried to reply, but Muhae held him back.“Have a seat.”He motioned to a dining table in the room’s center. Three chairs had obviously been placed there at Cheong’s behest the moment Muhae arrived.“Haven’t eaten yet, have you?”“I’m not in the mood to dine with you.”“But I think our friend here might, don’t you?”Muhae glanced at Joo-o, who averted his eyes. He must have lit up at the mention of food.Come to think of it, Joo-o had missed his mealtime. It was commendable he hadn’t complained.He hadn’t even eaten on the way here. Since food bore no guilt, it was best to fill him up first.As if sensing this, Cheong snapped his fingers. Staff materialized to place plates before them one by one.The presentation was so extravagantly old-fashioned it made Muhae chuckle—and for Joo-o, it felt like a dramatic production.The dull, reddening eyes suddenly gleamed with life. Without waiting, Joo-o slid into a chair and dug in.From fresh salad to steaming bread, fork-tender meat stew to a thick, just-grilled steak…Even Muhae felt his stomach protest, let alone Joo-o. Before being offered, Joo-o already reached for a chunk of steak.“Why don’t you sit? Your friend’s already started.”Muhae frowned and sat beside Joo-o. By then, half of Joo-o’s steak was gone.“I thought you’d never come back after last time. What brings you here?”“Don’t bother me—get to the point.”“Hm… Isn’t it you who should speak? You crawled all the way here for something, didn’t you?”Cheong strode to the opposite chair, chuckling. His laugh sounded naïve as a boy’s—yet chillingly out of place.Joo-o polished off the last of his steak and reached for the stew. He glanced at Cheong, licked his lips, and murmured:“Blueberry Cinnamon Roll.”One eyebrow of Cheong’s shot up.“You’ve never seen a blueberry. Blueberries aren’t blue.”“Blueberry.”“They’re purple. Do you know the difference between purple and blue?”“Blue.”Were these two grown men, or children playing make-believe?The childish squabble was almost enough to let Muhae relax. But Cheong cleared his throat, restoring order. Joo-o was digging into the stew now.Cheong signaled, and a fresh steak appeared before Joo-o. As if aware of how voraciously he ate, a new cut materialized in real time.“So, the point?”“You already know—why bother asking?”“I do. There are about ten possibilities, and I don’t know which one brought you here.”Cheong admitted it calmly. As Joo-o said, he’d meddled in countless matters.What was his motive? Still bitter over past neglect?“Delicious, isn’t it? It’s real meat.”“Mm, uh-huh.”No animosity glinted in Cheong’s eyes—only voracious boredom and a hint of curiosity, as always.“The bracelet.”At last, Muhae took control, and Cheong’s lips curved upward. He speared a piece of salad and answered.“Oh, that. I thought it’d suit me, so I splurged and bought it.”They both knew he’d snatched it to interfere—yet he spoke with a teasing grin. Muhae sliced his steak without changing expression.He’d met many spiteful troublemakers in his mercenary days. Wisdom taught him that getting dragged into such drama was the height of foolishness.“Give it to me.”But Joo-o wasn’t Muhae. He snapped the bait and dangled it before them.“Why? So you can wear it?”“You don’t need to know that.”He withheld all details, but Cheong, smelling victory, chuckled and broke his silence.“Problem is, it’s expensive.”“How much?”“Around a hundred thousand dil? You couldn’t buy it even by selling yourself.”“That’s not the price.”“Whatever the seller decides.”That inane banter finally flustered Joo-o. Though he hadn’t taken a bite, his cheek puffed out in frustration.

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